Now that we’ve (mostly) stopped playing our David Bowie albums on repeat on the old record player, driving around town with his CDs as our soundtrack, or streaming the Spotify station that was dedicated to him, there’s another — albeit unofficial — way we can remember the Starman.

The week after Bowie’s death on Jan. 10, staff at a local radio station called Studio Brussels said they, along with Belgian astronomers at MIRA Public Observatory in Grimbergen, Belgium, registered a new constellation in his honor — seven stars meant to form the lightning bolt Bowie wore on his face for the cover of his 1973 album, “Aladdin Sane.” As a bonus, Mars was in the vicinity of those stars at the exact time of his death. It’s not anymore; planets move quickly relative to the background of the stars.

The idea was wonderful, but the International Astronomical Union actually decides these things, and they say there are already 88 set constellations and no process in place to assign more. These are the same sticklers who demoted Pluto, so what can you expect?

So you won’t find Ziggy Stardust’s lightning bolt in the sky on any official maps, but the seven stars are: Sigma Librae, Spica, Alpha Virginis, Zeta Centauri, SAA 204 132 and the Beta Sigma Octantis Trianguli Australis. Most of them have weird names because they aren’t especially notable or bright stars.

Spica is probably the most recognizable star out of the seven, and sits at the top right corner of the lightning bolt. One way to find Spica is to follow the arc of the handle of the Big Dipper to the very bright star Arcturus, and then continue on the same angular path and distance to Spica. Think: “arc to Arcturus and spike to Spica.”

Visit www.stardustforbowie.be to see an interactive map of the honorary constellation and add your favorite Bowie song to the map with a short note.

localuniverse@msn.com

Twitter: @bymeljohnson

SKY CALENDAR

Through mid-month: Five planets — Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Mars and Jupiter — are all visible with the naked eye about an hour before dawn.

Feb. 7: The planet Mercury reaches greatest western elongation of 25.6 degrees from the sun. This is the best time to view Mercury since it will be at its highest point above the horizon in the morning sky. Look low in the eastern sky just before sunrise. Of special note is that Mercury and Venus have phases like the moon since they’re also between Earth and the sun. So grab some binoculars or a telescope and see if the planet is waxing or waning, a crescent or full, or somewhere in between!

Feb. 8: New moon. Zero moonlight makes this the ideal time of the month to observe faint objects like galaxies and star clusters.

Feb. 22: Full moon.